What advice would you give to a
novice entrepreneur?
1. Do market research before selling
or marketing.
I know it feels tedious but it makes a
world of difference. I put in two years
of research before I sold my first
bamboo straw. I had to do my research
to know the variety of bamboo that
works best for straws, the correct
diameter for the straws and a lot of
other factors that have helped me
create Bambusa’s flagship product.
2. Get a mentor.
I meet with my mentor once a year.
There was a meeting we had before
Bambusa took off that is ingrained in
my memory. We had a four hour lunch
where we just talked about business.
My family has lots of bamboo lands so
I was considering manufacturing the
bamboo straws myself. He said, “Tricia
you’re not a farmer, that’s not your
strength. Don’t put your energy there.
You're a sales and marketing expert.
You need a partner who can make the
straws so that you can focus on the
other areas of business.” To be honest, I
was pissed initially because I felt he was
throwing cold water on my vision. But, I
listened and it’s the best advice I’ve
gotten to this day. The first 1,000 Bambusa
straws we made ourselves but we quickly
realised that, given the demand and
Issue �: April ����
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